As regular readers know, Jeff Brown is our tech expert here at Legacy Research.
And he’s on a roll with his recommendations.
Jeff’s Near Future Report readers are up 257% on blue-chip semiconductor firm Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) in 24 months.
Readers of his small-cap tech advisory, Exponential Tech Investor, are up 379% on gene-editing company CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP) in about 38 months.
Jeff’s Early Stage Trader subscribers are also making big bucks.
They just closed a 432% gain on a tiny biopharmaceutical firm focused on treating cancer and autoimmune disorders.
And they were in the position for only five weeks.
Hats off to Jeff for handing his faithful readers an early Christmas present. And kudos if you followed his latest winning recommendation.
Jeff is optimistic about the high-tech future we’re about to find ourselves in.
But he’s no Pollyanna. As he told readers of his free daily tech investing e-letter, The Bleeding Edge…
The ethical questions over technology that mankind will face in the next decade will be unprecedented. There is no historical example of what we are going to face.
I don’t tell you all this to worry you. As a technologist, I believe that technology has always been a force for good. And I believe technology will also solve some of society’s biggest problems in the years ahead.
But we are at an inflection point. Over the two next decades, society will either become one of abundance for all… or it will descend into chaos. Time will tell which wins out.
And what’s happening right now in the so-called Land of the Free… is a major concern.
As I’ve been warning you since we launched The Daily Cut last year, every authoritarian government throughout history has placed a premium on surveillance.
That’s how they suppress dissent – by making you feel like you’re always being watched.
Traditionally, governments used human intelligence gatherers to snoop on us. Sometimes they also bugged individuals they wanted to keep a particularly close eye on.
But today, a mix of artificial intelligence (AI), big data, and facial recognition is slashing the costs of mass surveillance. This frees up governments to do more snooping.
As Legacy Research cofounder Bill Bonner put it…
Digital technology fundamentally decreases the cost of control. And when you reduce the cost of control, you get a lot more of it.
Yesterday, I showed you how the Chinese Communist Party is using this mix of breakthrough new tech to build the world’s first surveillance state in China.
And as you’ll see today, China isn’t the only country using this kind of kit to keep tabs on people. The same thing is happening right now in the U.S.
In fact, as soon as 2021, we could find ourselves living in a truly frightening global panopticon.
It’s by industry researcher IHS Markit. And it reveals that people in the U.S. are under roughly the same amount of surveillance as people in China.
In 2018, China had 350 million cameras. That’s one camera for every 4.1 people.
In the U.S., there were 70 million surveillance cameras. That’s a ratio of one camera for every 4.6 people.
And it’s getting worse.
By 2021, IHS Markit says there’ll be another 85 million surveillance cameras installed in the U.S. That means there’ll be roughly one camera for every two Americans.
Longtime readers will remember that we already warned you that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has been using state Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) databases to build a massive catalog of Americans’ faces.
That’s left one in three Americans in a facial recognition database. That’s more than 117 million people… You could be one of them.
And the feds love their new capabilities. Facial recognition searches are already more common than federal court-ordered wiretaps.
And if you think you can trust the feds to use these images only for national security, then I’ve got a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you.
It’s been more than 40 years since J. Edgar Hoover weaponized the FBI… and used it to carry out his personal agenda of blackmail and intimidation.
And no matter which side of the political spectrum you fall on, it’s certain that, at some point, your views will differ greatly from those of whoever is sitting in the director’s office at the J. Edgar Hoover Building.
The FBI and police also have a long history of using surveillance against civil rights protesters who challenged the status quo.
That’s why facial recognition technology can be so dangerous. It lets the feds spy on anyone they want without any need for a cover story.
But there’s not. As Jeff revealed just yesterday to Bleeding Edge readers, the DMV isn’t just opening up your personal details to the feds.
It’s also selling them to the highest private bidders. Jeff…
Hundreds of pages of documents just revealed that the DMVs have a widespread practice of selling our data to many different firms.
For example, the Virginia DMV sold data to 109 private investigation firms. As did the New Jersey DMV to at least 16 firms. Wisconsin’s DMV has data-sharing agreements with around two dozen firms. And Delaware’s has similar agreements with more than 12 firms.
And we aren’t talking about internet search data here. We are talking about personal data a bad actor would need to engage in identity theft. The DMV collects this data when we apply for a driver’s license and then turns around and sells it.
Of course, you can’t drive a car unless you agree to fill in all your details at the DMV. So the feds are forcing you to cough up all this data. Then, they’re using it – without your explicit consent – as they see fit.
The only way to change what’s going on is to raise awareness of the problem. So please, bang the drum about this with friends and family. Forward them these emails.
And let us know your thoughts. Should the feds be allowed to use your face to feed their surveillance algorithms? Is it worth giving up your liberty for the extra safety that advocates of mass surveillance say it brings?
Write us at feedback@legacyresearch.com.
Regards,
Chris Lowe
December 10, 2019
New York City, USA
P.S. In tomorrow’s dispatch, I’ll tell you about a legendary trader you’ve probably never heard of. But his teachings have been a big influence on my understanding of the markets. So be sure to tune in for that.
And if you want a sneak peek at who I’m going to be talking about, he’s prepared a series of documentary-style videos that take you behind the scenes of his day-to-day life as a top trader. Secure your access here for free with one click.
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